As of: February 15, 2024, 6:05 a.m
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Private consumption, which accounts for more than half of Japan's economic power, fell by 0.2 percent.
© Eugene Hoshiko/AP/dpa
The USA and China have by far the largest gross domestic product in the world.
Japan was behind for years - but now Germany is the third largest economy,
Tokyo - Japan lost its status as the world's third-largest economy to Germany and unexpectedly slipped into recession in the final quarter of last year due to weak domestic demand.
As the government in Tokyo announced, Japan's nominal gross domestic product in 2023 amounted to 4.21 trillion dollars (3.9 trillion euros).
This means that Japan is now only number four in the world economy after Germany with $4.46 trillion.
This is mainly due to the sharp fall in the value of the yen.
In the October to December quarter, Japan's economy shrank by 0.1 percent compared to the previous quarter, the second quarter in a row.
With two negative quarters in a row, economists are talking about a technical recession.
Private consumption, which accounts for more than half of Japan's economic output, fell by 0.2 percent, marking the third consecutive quarter of decline, the government announced.
Japanese households are struggling with rising living costs and falling real wages.
Corporate investment spending was also weak, falling by 0.1 percent.
“The fact that Germany has overtaken Japan shows that we urgently need to press ahead with structural reforms and create a new phase of growth,” said Economic Revitalization Minister Yoshitaka Shindo in Tokyo.
The USA and China are in the first two places.
dpa